St Rocco’s Church – Montorio al Vomano
St Rocco’s Church is in Piazza Orsini, the main square of Montorio. Its façade is a composition of two distinct elements, which come together lightly bent. On the left there is the first unit started by Vittoria Camponeschi in 1527 and finished by Giovanni Carafa in 1543. Paolo IV raised it to Church Collegiate in 1559. On the right there is the extension realized in the 17th century, in fact the portal brings the date 1673.
The façade of the church’s oldest flank is made of regular ashlars stonework, a small portal crowned by a fanlight representing the Annunciation, and on the outside framework by a frieze of stylized palm leaves (palmetto). Not far, there is a round painting representing Saint Rocco.
The flat lintel of the portal presents at its centre the monogram of Bernardino and rests on two brackets with a flower decorative element. The fluted lateral pillars have a flower decoration too. The oxeye window and two arched windows above the portal open on to the crown.
The bell tower clock is at the rear of the church, on the left. It was first erected perhaps during the extension works of the 1600, afterwards modified and rebuilt in 1859 and again more recently.
The Clock Tower was built in 1560 on a spot between the University palace and the first nave of the original church. It was first restored in 1811 when a magnificent ceramic dial by Castelli artisans was mounted in. A second restoration took place in 1813 and later a new clock machine was installed, this time supplied by the company Cesare Fontana in Milan.
The interior furniture (one-nave ground plan) comprises of four monumental gilt painted wooden altars datable between the 17th and beginning of 18th century. They still confer to the church a warm feeling of opulence and remain a symbol of the Baroque style with their spiral columns and wooden statues of Apostles and Saints.
Here there are two canvases: the Resurrection of the 1530 and the Last supper of the 1607.
In the church also there is an interesting three-mirrored pipe organ in painted wood bestowed by a citizen in 1735. The decoration represents naked caryatids arising from an acanthus bush, winged protomorphic angels, vases with flowers and other ornaments and cherubs holding the capitals of the pipe organ’s lateral pillars. The thirty-one front tin pipes divide into three spires, a few have a spiral decoration.
Finally, the presbytery displays the wooden shrine along with a silver statue of Saint Rocco.